The Seven Sisters
by wandering jedi
Summary: During the latter days of the Old Republic, Jedi Master Jaren Cregg and his apprentice Lodon M'thar stumble upon a forgotten planet bereft of technology. There they find medieval armoured knights, a callous feudal lord, and the Seven Sisters, powerful healers that have developed unique Force powers. After the Jedi confront the tyrant, they learn that not all is as it seems...
1. Chapter 1 - Trials

**I. Trials**

"And for your final trial, before you can be declared a Jedi Master," Kit Fisto announced, "We have chosen a special task that very few Jedi have ever been able to accomplish. You must create an operational holocron." Jedi Master Fisto was a green-skinned Nautolan, with large black glassy eyes, a mass of neatly arranged head-tails in place of hair, and a set of gills on each side of his neck.

Jaren Cregg, Jedi Knight, felt his breath hiss out in a long, involuntary rush. He had spent many hours studying holocron construction, but he had not intended to attempt assembling one until his knowledge was more complete. Holocrons recquired an intimate understanding of electronics in addition to a high degree of control over the ever-shifting Force. Jaren looked up to see his droid, J9-Y, carrying a tray with some tools and several holocron parts on it.

"Good luck, _master,_" the droid said with as much sarcasm as his vocoder could produce.

"I'm not a master yet, Jaynine," Jaren replied under his breath as he took the tray and set it on the work table beside him, studiously ignoring the droid's ironic tone of voice. Although Jaren had built Jaynine, their relationship was more like that of old friends than master and servant.

"You have 36 hours, Jedi Cregg, starting… now." Jaren tried to find a hint of emotion in Kit Fisto's dark, impenetrable eyes, but he could see none. Master Fisto had a reputation among the Jedi as being a fierce and passionate fighter, and his characteristic grin was a strong contrast to the light-lipped control shown my most of the masters. It was well-known that he had a deep friendship with the Twi'lek Jedi Aayla Secura, and that many of the masters disapproved of the closeness of their relationship, not because of any impropriety, but because they believed the intensity of attachment could lead to impulsive and irrational actions. As he stood at the door, however, his trademark smile was absent, and Jaren could see only his own reflection in the master's black, glassy eyes.

"May the Force be with you." Master Fisto uttered the words with quiet reassurance, guessing at Jaren's lack of confidence.

"And also with you." Jaren turned to his tools and began organizing them in preparation for his difficult task.

* * *

"Hold your off-hand up higher, padawan. That's the key to the spin-and-block defence."

"I just can't seem to perfect it, Master Windu," the apprentice responded in a slow, methodical voice. "I'll try again," he said with some resignation, taking up his position opposite his sparring partner. They fought with real lightsabers, not the practice foils reserved for younger padawans, and the penalty for failing to defend oneself properly could be severe.

"Don't worry, Lodon, you're doing fine. Practice is the only way to master this important tactic. This time you'll defend yourself against me, and you will not fail. Reach within, find the Force, and use it to predict my actions. Ready? Go!"

The padawan found himself suddenly beset by the venerable master, who was rumoured to be the best lightsaber duelist in the galaxy.

"Fear not, Lodon, for even I have been defeated," Master Windu asserted between strikes. Lodon, a slow-moving Ithorian, frequently used his off-hand for extra support on his lightsaber hilt to fend off the master's fierce thrusts. Suddenly Master Windu accelerated his already intense rhythm, forcing Lodon to spin in order to dodge a blow. Lodon stretched out with his free arm and Master Windu suddenly stumbled as a nearby plant reached out to trip him. With the unthinking reflexes of a veteran warrior, Master Windu sliced through the thin grey branch and raised his lightsaber for the next strike.

"What have you done?" Lodon cried out before he could continue the exercise. The padawan retracted his lightsaber, rushed over to the damaged plant and lifted the severed limb gently back into place. He wrapped his hand around the joint and closed his eyes in quiet concentration for a few moments. When he removed his hands a slight scar was all that remained to indicate that the branch had ever been sundered.

"Lodon M'thar, you are a resourceful padawan, aren't you?" Windu said with a chuckle. "It's no surprise your Herd Ship elders didn't know what to do with you. My offensive was intended to force you to make use of the spin-and-block maneuver. You, however, have shown that another, unorthodox defense may also be employed. That's enough sparring for today," stated the master, looking up at the other apprentices. "Carry out your exercises and we'll revisit the spin-and-block tomorrow."

* * *

Jaren sat cross-legged on the floor, eyes closed, with a small polygonal prism suspended in front of him. Sweat poured down his face, which was creased with concentration. Tiny lines of energy sparkled and flashed on the surface of the prism, which slowly lowered to Jaren's open palm. His face and body relaxed, then he stood and walked to a nearby workbench.

"The fusers, please, Jaynine." Jaren grunted in thanks as the droid handed him the tool. "Alright, Jaynine, this is the moment of truth. If this thing doesn't work, we'll be exploring the Outer Rim for the next twenty years."

"Don't say that, you're much too valuable to the Jedi Order to be sent to the Outer Rim." This time there was only a hint of sarcasm.

"Thanks, Jaynine, but I think the Council might feel otherwise." He flipped up his magnifiers, and closed his eyes. Jaynine watched in silence, waiting for something to happen.

"Is... something wrong?"

"I... I don't know..."

Just then the door slid open and Jaren found himself once again viewing the friendly yet unreadable face of Kit Fisto.

"The Council awaits, Jaren Cregg, Jedi Knight."

"There is no need for me see the Council, Master Fisto, I have failed. The holocron doesn't work, and I am content to serve the Order as a Knight. I am not strong enough to train others in the Jedi way."

"That is for the Council to decide, Jaren. They have wisdom beyond all others." He reached out and levitated the holocron to his hand. "This is fine workmanship; you underestimate your own abilities." With that he turned and left the room, and Jaren reluctantly followed. They made their way to the nearest turbolift in silence as other Jedi went about their daily duties, oblivious of the recent trial.

When the turbolift doors opened, Jaren followed the Nautolan master to another set of doors ornately embossed with the Jedi insignia.

"Welcome to the Council Chamber," the master said warmly. The edges of his mouth were turned upwards, finally showing a hint of his customary smile, and although Jaren appreciated the encouragement, his head hung in defeat and resignation.

"Faced all of the trials, you have, Jedi Cregg." Jaren looked up to see Master Yoda, who had taught him when he was just a youngling. "Here is the result of his labour, Master Yoda," Fisto said as he walked over to the venerable Jedi and handed him Jaren's holocron. Yoda closed his eyes in concentration for a moment, then opened them thoughtfully.

"I have failed; the holocron does not work," Jaren said without looking up, "I apologize for wasting the Council's time. I am happy to continue serving the Order as a Knight, if that is acceptable to the Council."

"An important quality in a Jedi Master, humility is," Yoda replied, "but perhaps too humble you are, Jedi Cregg." Yoda opened his hand and levitated the holocron so that it floated back towards the Jedi Knight. Master Mace Windu looked over at Yoda, who nodded slightly, provoking a knowing look from the tall human.

"A holocron cannot be activated until its gatekeeper has been chosen, or so I have been told," said Master Windu, gazing out the panoramic windows at the planet-city Coruscant. "Due to the Force-signature established in forging a holocron, only the creator of the device can link it to its gatekeeper. This must be done before we can determine the outcome of your trial - you must choose a gatekeeper now."

For the first time, Jaren looked up and held the gaze of the Council members. Each one of them was a worthy gatekeeper, but as he touched the Force in search of an answer, his eyes came to rest on his first teacher. "I choose Master Yoda," he stated solemnly. The wizened master rose from his seat and, leaning heavily on his walking stick, approached his former student. Using the Force, Jaren raised the holocron between them, and then closed his eyes and fell into deep meditation. A bead of sweat trickled down his brow as a halo of light emanated from the holocron. The light expanded until it enveloped both the knight and the master, and then suddenly faded as Jaren fell with exhaustion. Yoda reached out and caught the holocron in his hand, while Kit Fisto caught Jaren from behind and helped him to a nearby cushion-chair.

"I... I'm sorry Master Yoda.. I don't think..." Jaren muttered as Yoda returned to his seat. The master once again suspended the holocron in midair and closed his eyes in concentration. Lines of energy sparkled and flashed across the surface of the device and suddenly an image of Yoda appeared above it. "Do, or do not, there is no try," the holographic version of Yoda stated sharply, shaking his walking stick at Jaren.

"The first holocron in over a thousand years, you have created," the diminutive Jedi master said as the holocron returned to his grasp. He held it as if it was an infant, almost afraid to touch it. "Remembered for years to come, this accomplishment will be. An apprentice you may now take, Master Cregg."

Jaren looked around in disbelief, expecting the other council members to disagree with the eldest of their Order. Instead, he found them nodding in agreement, eyes wide with awe. "Return to us when rested you are, Master Cregg." Yoda's eyes remained fixated on the cube in his lap. Suddenly he looked up. "Master Cregg."

"Yes, Master Yoda?"

"Thank-you for your gift."

"I hope it will serve the Order."

After Jaren had departed, Master Windu turned to Yoda, who was still preoccupied with the holocron. "He did not even think to make himself the gatekeeper," the dark-skinned Windu stated thoughtfully. "He will be an effective teacher, and a reliable leader, when the time comes."

* * *

"Ready for the duels, Lodon?" The bright, cheery voice of Jass Kir-Daylen, Lodon's sparring partner, rang out behind the slow-moving Ithorian. Jass was a human girl from the planet Fest, a cold and barely hospitable world in the Outer Rim. She was always full of energy and mirth, and was louder and less restrained than most of the young Jedi students.

"No, but I'll never be ready," the Ithorian responded quietly.

"Don't worry, Lodon, you'll do fine. I saw the roster, and you're up against the Sullustan, Nllr Tnub in the first round. He's quick, but not very accurate, and has little patience. As long as you can parry his attacks, you'll be able to defeat him."

"I'm not sure it will be that easy, but thanks for making me feel better, Jass."

Lodon sat in the seats above the dueling diamond and watched his fellow padawans face off against each other. A Jedi knight stood at each corner of the diamond in order to judge the opponents and to intervene if necessary. The duels were reserved for padawans near the end of their training, and real lightsabers were used rather than the practice blades employed to teach younglings. A large crowd of Jedi masters and knights sat in the raised seats surrounding the dueling diamond, quietly observing the hopeful young padawans as they sparred with each other. Every master that was considering taking on an apprentice was there, and since lightsaber combat required a great deal of concentration and adept control of the Force, the duels were generally used to decide which padawans would be chosen to become apprentices so that they could complete their training and become Jedi knights.

After a few duels had been fought, Lodon heard the adjudicator droid call Jass to the dueling diamond, along with her opponent, a young human male. With her knees and elbows slightly bent, Jass stood waiting for the starting signal while her opponent paced impatiently. According to ancient tradition, the duelists began their combat empty-handed, their lightsabers clipped to their belts. The starting signal sounded and within half a heartbeat Jass and her lightsaber were high in the air. As she flipped, her lightsaber hilt sailed through the air in front of her, manipulated through the Force alone. The blade ignited as if the lightsaber had a will of its own, then Jass reached out with both hands to swing it down in a powerful arc. The young man who opposed her was barely able to ignite his lightsaber in time to repel her attack, and he stumbled backwards from the impact. Jass seemed to instantly regain composure, and spun in a complete circle while at the same time striding forward to come up beside the other padawan. He blocked the strike, but in doing so he was forced to step outside of the diamond, and a buzzer sounded. Jass was awarded a point, and the duelists retracted their lightsaber blades and returned to their respective corners to start again. The match went on in a similar fashion, with Jass defeating the young man by a score of nine to one. Lodon watched in amazement as she executed extremely precise spins and flips while accurately aiming her deadly blade and avoiding that of her opponent. He noticed that several well-known masters sat in the audience, all of them looking on without emotion, but their presence alone was a clear indication of their opinion regarding the talented young padawan.

Soon Lodon was called to the diamond, and he took his place with some trepidation. His wide-set eyes on the ends of his hammer-shaped head gave him an excellent view of his Sullustan opponent, Nllr Tnub. Lodon could barely hear the starting signal over the pounding of his heartbeat in his ears. He drew his lightsaber and ignited it in one smooth motion, as his masters had taught him, and set his feet in a defensive stance. A fraction of a second passed before he realized his opponent had taken the same strategy.

With his long legs, Lodon was able to reach the Sullustan in two strides, swinging his blade in an overhead arc. Tnub raised his lightsaber to parry, but had to step sideways as the force of the blow overcame his attempt to block the attack. He allowed his lightsaber to be pushed down towards the floor, and used the momentum to swing his blade around in an upward arc, giving him a clear opening to strike at Lodon's exposed flank. The Ithorian confidently executed the spin-and-block maneuver, raising his hands so that the tip of his blade pointed towards the ground as he turned. Tnub had not expected any resistance to his attack, and was quite surprised when his blow bounced off of Lodon's lightsaber. He nonetheless managed to keep Lodon on the defensive with three quick downward alternating strikes, but soon found himself retracing his footsteps when Lodon launched a counter-attack. The two padawans were very evenly matched, and the duel continued in a back-and-forth manner until Lodon finally forced the Sullustan to step out of bounds in order to parry an attack. The match continued in this manner for some time, until both combatants had each scored five points.

"This will be the first tie-breaking round of the tournament," the hovering adjudicator droid said cheerfully, "the padawan to score the next point will win the match and advance to the next tier. You will now have a thirty second break." Lodon's eyes roved back and forth in his flat, graceful face as he searched the audience for a familiar face. He noticed a few disinterested masters who appeared to be waiting for the next match to start before he found Jass, who waved enthusiastically and then made a circular motion with her index finger: the signal for attempting to disarm an opponent in lightsaber combat. The disarming manoeuvre was extremely difficult to master, but because of this, it was also unexpected. A failed attempt to disarm an opponent left the attacker vulnerable, however, and was only rarely attempted even by Jedi knights.

A split second after the starting signal sounded, Lodon found himself desperately fending off the Sullustan, who had launched a fierce offensive in a desperate bid to win the match. Lodon rolled under one of the attacks and made his way to the middle of the diamond, so that he was no longer in danger of stepping out of bounds. He turned and raised his lightsaber in anticipation of another attack, and found that his opponent had returned to his more cautious strategy, looking for a weakness in Lodon's stance and style. A moment later they both strode forward and began exchanging blows, testing each other's mettle. Eventually they ended up a half-meter apart, their blades locked together in a battle of strength and endurance, their faces only a few hand-spans apart. Suddenly Lodon remembered Jass's suggestion, and he released the pressure on his blade while rotating his wrists downward, creating the spinning motion required to twist the Sullustan's lightsaber out of his grip. Lodon miscalculated however, and as his lightsaber spun upwards it grazed Tnub's thigh, slicing a thin line through the lower part of his robe and into his leg.

"Disqualified, disqualified," the adjudicator droid's mechanical voice repeated as Tnub cried out in pain and fell backwards onto the dueling mat. Lodon instinctively dropped his lightsaber, allowing the dead-man's switch to retract the blade automatically. He knelt next to the Sullustan and placed his hands on the other's thigh, instantly connecting to and calling on the powerful binding and regenerative powers of the Force. After a brief moment Tnub's face relaxed and Lodon looked up to find himself surrounded by Jedi masters and a medical droid preparing a repulsor-gurney.

"I... I'm sorry, I'm really sorry," he found himself muttering as he was escorted away while the next combatants were called to the dueling mat. Jaren Cregg, who had been watching the match and had rushed down to the Sullustan after he had been struck, remained on the mat a moment longer. He bent down and retrieved the Ithorian's lightsaber before following Lodon and the others to the hallway outside the dueling chamber.

* * *

"But Master Cregg, I don't understand why you would choose me as your apprentice. I lost my first duel and injured another padawan. It would probably be best if I returned to my herdship, and worked towards becoming an Acolyte."

"The duels are not only about winning and losing, Lodon, they also reveal the strengths and weaknesses of the student. You showed creativity by disarming your opponent while locking blades, and most importantly, you showed compassion by healing your opponent as soon as you had hurt him. The ability to strike down an opponent in battle can easily be manipulated to do more harm than good, unless it is restrained by discipline and kindness." Cregg paused while Lodon considered his words.

"Besides," he continued, "I'm no warrior. I have focused on using the Force to manipulate micro-electrical charges, and to understand the complex mathematics required for droid programming and astrogational computations. What good would I be as a master to an apprentice focused on lightsaber combat? The Force has many applications, and the duels simply provide us with a way of evaluating how a padawan will react when faced with a real threat." The master paused thoughtfully for a second time.

"You have no need to be concerned, Lodon. I lost my first duel as well."


	2. Chapter 2 - Bacta Run

**II. Bacta Run**

"We need you to escort a large shipment of bacta to Desevro, here, in the Tion sector." Jedi Master Mace Windu pointed to the tip of one of the two galactic spiral arms on the holo-display. "It was once the capital of the region, but was badly damaged after a brief war with the Republic 25,000 years ago. The people of Desevro are proud, and chose to remain independent even after the rest of the sector joined the Republic. Just yesterday the Jedi Council learned that an unexpected influx of volcanic activity has caused widespread disaster on Desevro, and that many people are badly wounded. The Senate has decided to send bacta as a gesture of good will, but it must get there soon, before those who need it become one with the Force."

Windu looked up from the holo-display and fixed his gaze on the middle-aged Jaren Cregg, whose unlined face might have led one to believe he was still quite young, if not for the flecks of white shot through his short dark hair, giving away his true age.

"The fastest hyperspace routes to Desevro run close to territory controlled by pirates, and bacta is a valuable commodity throughout the galaxy," Jaren stated as he glanced over at his apprentice, the Ithorian Lodon M'thar. "I can see why the Senate has asked for a Jedi escort."

"You will have four Republic T-24 starfighters in addition to your own ship, which should be enough to deter any unwanted attention. Contact the sector watchman, Kaydree Ordell, when you arrive, and she will relay any messages back to the Council. May the Force be with you."

"And also with you," Jaren and Lodon responded simultaneously.

With a nod of his head Windu turned and left the debriefing chamber while Jaren and Lodon exited through a door in the opposite direction.

* * *

"Where did you get this ship? It doesn't look like anything from Kuat Drive Yards. Maybe Sluis Van?" Lodon continued to mutter to himself as he circled Jaren's vessel in awe. Its hull was shaped like a triangle with the back corners curved downwards. On each side there was a large oval-shaped bulge covered with retractable hull plates. The cockpit was protected from above by the hull, with an angled semicircular viewscreen that faced both forward and downward, giving the pilot a near-panoramic view in those directions.

"The shape of the hull reminds me of the hooded Dandra snakes of Ithor," Lodon said, still in awe of the impressive vehicle.

"You won't find another one like her anywhere in the galaxy." Jaren folded his arms across his chest as he admired the craft. "At least not for another year or two. She's a prototype luxury yacht that I designed for-"

"_You_ designed, master?" A droid of approximately human height was rolling down the boarding ramp in the center of the ship. It was propelled by two sets of tank-like treads that supported a serpentine torso with two arms. In place of eyes, it had a visor that protected a bank of light sensors, and its triangular vocoder was located on the bottom of its face, in the place one might expect to find a chin in a humanoid species.

"Well, I certainly helped." Before the droid could respond, Jaren quickly turned towards his apprentice. "Lodon, meet Jaynine, my humble droid."

"I belong to no being," the droid declared, directing his gaze at his supposed master. "My full designation is J9-Y," he stated politely, turning towards the Ithorian, "I am the primary designer, mechanic and pilot of the _Prime Meridian_, and droid counterpart of your master, Jaren Cregg."

"I designed and built Jaynine a decade ago, after years of experimentation," Jaren explained, "You'll find he has a mind of his own, and that he only follows instructions if he agrees with them. He only calls me 'master' so that I can maintain a small shred of my self-respect." The Jedi master smiled light-heartedly.

"If you created him, why don't you just re-program him?" Lodon asked quietly, as J-9 went about his pre-flight preparations.

"Pilot droids have to be confident," Jaren replied, "If not, they tend to freeze up in emergency situations because they try to calculate every possible course of action. Giving them more confidence fixes the problem, but unfortunately it can also make them a little obnoxious."

* * *

"_Prime Meridian_, this is Captain Drezriff of the bacta tanker _Galvanna II_, please confirm that you have received the hyperspace coordinates," came a voice over the comm.

"Coordinates received. _Prime Meridian_ and starfighters are ready for the jump to hyperspace on your signal, Captain." Jaynine manned the controls and the comm while Jaren and Lodon sat behind him in the cockpit. The droid had a second, thinner set of arms that were normally recessed into special grooved channels below his primary pair. He used them now to help adjust the various knobs, buttons, levers and switches on the wide piloting console, while Jaren and Lodon watched ships of all shapes and sizes jump to and from hyperspace in the busy space lanes surrounding Coruscant. Jaynine also had a computer interface arm, like those normally found on astromech droids, which he had linked into a receptacle on the wall of the console and was spinning from side to side as he interacted directly with the ship's sensors and hyperdrive. As soon as the signal from the control centre was given, Jaynine pushed a twin set of levers away from him, and the points of light that were distant stars became blurred lines as the _Prime Meridian_ entered hyperspace.

"We should reach Desevro in thirty-seven standard hours," the droid informed his passengers. "Normally it would be less than half that time, but we have to remain close to the tanker. You are now free to leave your seats."

"Good work, Jaynine. Lodon, I'll show you your quarters." Behind the cockpit was a hallway with four doors on each side, and beyond that, an open area with two doors leading towards the aft of the ship. Jaren gave himself and Lodon the two rooms designated as crew quarters, which were close to the cockpit. There were also four luxury suites, and two larger oval-shaped rooms that were located beneath the oval-shaped bulges on the hull.

"These larger rooms were designed to be a swimming pool and a passenger lounge," Jaren told Lodon, "but for this prototype, I had them converted into laser cannon turrets. The retractable skylight covers were designed to protect the ship, but in this model they also serve to conceal our considerable firepower."

Lodon followed Jaren to the other turret chamber, where a number of archaic lightsabers were displayed in a recessed niche on one wall, and three holocrons were displayed on another.

"I've been interested in the history of lightsaber construction since I was a padawan. These artifacts have been collected from all across the galaxy; most of them no longer work. This one here was built by the Twi'lek Jedi, Tott Doneeta, who lived nearly four thousand years ago. The holocrons belong to the Jedi Council, but they have given me permission to keep them here so that I can study them while traveling. They're protected by a fence-field that can only be deactivated by using the Force to carry out a precise series of fine manipulations. When you're ready, I'll teach you the combination. For now, however," Jaren reached down and picked up a blast helmet, "you should continue to practice your lightsaber combat skills."

* * *

"Feeling well-rested, Lodon?" Jaren walked into the galley where Lodon was eating breakfast. "You put in a long day yesterday."

"I'm fine, master, but I'm still wondering why you chose me as your apprentice. There are many padawans that are much more talented than I am."

"They might be more talented than you are right now," Jaren responded, "but you have more potential." Jaren looked Lodon in the eye.

"You might be surprised to learn that I once felt the same way, Lodon. Not long after becoming a Jedi Knight, I handed in my lightsaber and resigned from the Order. I thought I was better suited to working as an engineer than as a warrior and keeper of the peace. Before me, there were only nineteen Jedi who had ever left the Order. After I resigned, we were known as the Lost Twenty."

"What made you change your mind and return?"

"After leaving the Order, I married and had a daughter. We were happy for many years, or so I thought, but I was often busy with my work, and one day my wife asked for a divorce. I was devastated, and turned to the only source of guidance I had ever known, the Jedi Council. They returned my robes and lightsaber, and allowed me to continue my research into -"

Suddenly an alarm sounded throughout the ship. "Jaren, get up here!" Jaynine's urgent voice came over the intercom. Lodon and Jaren scrambled to the cockpit as the _Prime Meridian_ dropped out of hyperspace. Once there, they saw a large asteroid blocking their path, with a few planets and a distant sun also in view.

"Where are we?" Jaren asked.

"Erediss System," Jaynine answered quietly, "that's Eredenn VII over there."

"Never heard of it," Jaren muttered under his breath as he scanned the sensor displays.

"What's going on, _Meridian_? Is it an uncharted comet?" Captain Drezriff's voice came over the comm.

"Hey, it looks like fragments are breaking off of it," Lodon noted, pointing to reflections of sunlight coming from the lower right side of the asteroid.

"Those aren't fragments," Jaynine announced, "they're drifting starfighters, with their engines and shields shut down." One by one the backsides of the drifting objects lit up and sped towards the _Meridian _and the tanker. At the same time, a larger white object began to show on the far side of the asteroid.

"A cruiser," Jaren whispered, "whoever these guys are, they're well-organized. Captain Drezriff," he ordered, turning on the comm, "take evasive action. That cruiser must have a tractor beam, don't let it get close enough to use it. Have your navicomputer calculate a new hyperspace route to our original destination, we'll get there when we can. Silver One and Two, fly attack pattern sigma towards that cruiser, but break off before you get in range of the tractor beam. Pirates aren't known for taking prisoners. Silver Three and Four, help us take out those fighters."

Jaren turned to find a helpless expression on Lodon's face. "C'mon, let's go!" he shouted as he ran down the hallway towards the laser canon turrets. Bewildered, Lodon followed him down the hallway, strapped himself into the remaining turret and donned a headset.

"Jaynine, keep the canopies closed as long as possible," Jaren's voice came over the earpiece, "we'll catch them by surprise. How many fighters do you see?"

"Twelve, master. We won't be able to take them all."

"_Twelve_? Alright, we're just going to make a few passes, do as much damage as we can and then take a defensive position. Make your shots count, Lodon."

"Yes, master." Lodon switched on his targeting computer and powered up the double-barreled cannon. A moment later, the hull plates retracted, revealing the immensity of space along with the bright flashes of laser cannon exchanges. A well-used but unfamiliar-looking fighter suddenly came into view, easily dodging the blasts of the _Meridian_'s lower cannon that Jaynine was operating from the cockpit. Lodon fired and hit the ship before the pilot even realized there was any danger, sending the small fighter into a uncontrolled spin. The bright flash of an explosion caught Lodon's eye as Jaren scored a direct hit on a fighter that had been flying past his side of the _Meridian_.

"Now that they know we're not fooling around, it won't be so easy," Jaren said over the headset.

"Prepare for evasive action, snap roll, port," Jaynine warned as the _Prime Meridian _spiraled downwards and to the left. Lodon felt as if his stomach had been left behind, and nausea suddenly overcame all his other thoughts. He shut both of his mouths tightly and resisted the feeling until the ship came out its roll.

"Lodon, fire to the right of that fighter at mark five point four six." Lodon didn't realize he still had his eyes closed until he heard Jaren's command. He did as he was asked, and the fighter veered towards the _Meridian_ in order to avoid annihilation. A line of laser fire shot out from Jaren's side of the ship, striking the fighters wing, and sending it into a rapid corkscrew roll, headed directly for the aft of the _Meridian_.

"Down, Jaynine!" The ship lurched once again, this time into a steep dive, and Lodon found himself fighting nausea with his eyes closed for a second time.

"Silver Two has been ionized, Master Cregg," a new voice came over the headset. "The cruiser is headed directly for the _Galvanna_."

"You've picked up a double-tail, _Meridian_," another voice stated as Lodon was rocked by the impact of blaster cannon fire on the rear shields. "We... can't... help you, you're... gonna have to-" The voice was cut short by a cascade of laser fire and a distant explosion.

"Silver Four! Damn it!" Jaren's familiar voice came over the comm again. "All ships, fall back to the _Galvanna_ and establish a perimeter. The _Meridian _will run rear guard, the rest of you get ready to run. We can't-" His message was cut short by a blast that struck his gun turret directly. "We can't take much more of this. These are no ordinary pirates."

Lodon and Jaren began a pattern of rear cover fire, making it difficult for the following fighters to position themselves directly behind their ship. Jaynine sent the _Prime_ _Meridian _into a series of dips, sharp turns and spins, keeping the ship safe from damage, but also taking it further away from the bacta tanker.

"Reverse turn," the droid's voice came over the headset as Lodon felt his stomach lurch once more. The ship carried out a hard 180-degree turn and rammed one of the following fighters with the thick hull plate that covered the top of the cockpit. The fighter broke apart with a wrenching groan and drifted away behind the ship.

"Always follow at a safe distance," Jaynine joked in a wry voice as Jaren and Lodon watched the debris drift past.

"Try to locate the ion cannon on that cruiser, Jaynine," Jaren instructed. "We'll do a flyby and take it out. We're gonna have to come in hot so they can't use a tractor beam on us."

"Our navicomputer needs another 45 seconds before we can jump," Captain Drezriff informed them. "But that cruiser will be in range in 30 seconds. If you can just stall them for a bit, we'll be clear."

Lodon had thought they were already moving at top speed, and was surprised to find himself pushed back in his chair as the _Meridian_ accelerated towards the looming cruiser. His targeting computer had identified the ion cannon, but it was partially hidden by a large turbolaser cannon, meaning accuracy would be paramount.

"That ion cannon is on your side, Lodon," Jaren pointed out, "I won't be able to hit it. I'll give us some cover, but you have to hit that cannon. The _Galvanna_ can take a bit of a pounding from the turbolasers, but one ion hit will leave her helpless."

"Yes, master," Lodon replied in acknowledgement. He briefly closed his eyes and envisioned the vast jungle forests of the Ithorian herdship _Tafanda Bay_, where he had been born and raised in his early years. The thought of that vast, peaceful, interconnected and infinitely complex ecosystem brought him to a state of calm.

"We're now in range of their turbolasers," Jaynine warned as he executed a few preliminary evasive maneuvers. Lodon came out of his brief trance to see that the cruiser had grown in size, and dwarfed the yacht he rode in. He felt like a song-bird fighting off a sparrowhawk, but he knew that more often than not, a song-bird's determination was enough to keep a raptor at bay. A few blasts found their way home, and the _Prime Meridian_ rocked as Lodon tracked the ion cannon on his viewscreen.

"Hold your fire... hold your fire... now, Lodon!" The apprentice called on the Force to guide his actions as he pulled both of the triggers and released a rapid series of bolts towards his barely visible target. A plume of smoke rose up from the other ship and Lodon saw a large scorch mark across the cannon's dome as they rounded the cruiser and flew out of view.

"Fighters!" Jaynine yelled as the _Meridian_ was pelted with laser fire from two smaller ships that had predicted her flight path.

"Good work, Master Cregg, the ion cannon is out, but we can feel a tractor beam locking onto us. Still ten seconds before we can jump..." Captain Drezriff's voice trailed off with a defeated note, guessing that they simply were not going to be able to slow down the much larger cruiser.

"Jaynine, take us on a vector intercepting that tractor beam," Jaren directed, "it'll be forced to lock onto us, and the _Galvanna_ will be freed."

"No offense, master, but I don't want to become spare parts."

"Just do it, Jaynine, and make sure our engines are aimed directly at the cruiser. We should be able to pull out of the beam before it's too late."

"Alright," the droid responded with resignation. Lodon and Jaren continued to fend off the trailing fighters while Jaynine did his best to ensure they avoided the larger bolts coming from the cruiser's turbolaser batteries. The _Meridian _suddenly jarred and slowed, sending Lodon and Jaren forward in their seats. Almost immediately the ship was slammed by two cannon blasts, but the shields continued to hold.

"_Galvanna_, you should be free. May the Force be with you." The tanker vanished before Jaren finished his sentence.

Lodon felt the tug-of-war between the two ships as Jaynine fought to free the _Meridian_ from the cruiser's grasp. The temperature began to rise, and an acrid smell permeated the air as the twin engines whined in protest. Lodon felt a disturbance in the Force; his master was helping to pull the ship away from the tractor beam. Suddenly the beam released, and the _Meridian _shot away from the cruiser as if it had been held by a durasteel cable that had snapped under tension.

"What's the damage report, Jaynine?"

"The engines are both burnt out. I can still steer, but not well enough to align for a hyperspace jump."

"Our only chance is to land on that planet. If we stay out here, those pirates'll turn us into space junk. Do we have enough momentum to make it, Jaynine?"

"The _Meridian_'s computer says we can get there, but our angle of approach is steep. If I can't get her nose down, we'll just skip off the atmosphere."

"Well... may the Force be with you. Looks like we're still needed back here, Lodon." A pair of mismatched fighters hove into view behind the _Meridian_ as she drifted silently through the vacuum. Mentally exhausted, Lodon turned back to his targeting computer and let a stream of bolts fly at the nearest ship. He missed, but the pirate kept his distance. Jaren played his hand more carefully, picking off the odd shot until he finally managed to clip the fighter's wing, causing it to back off until it was nearly out of range. As they approached the planet the fighters fell back even further, and eventually left altogether.

"Well, I guess they've given up on trying to vaporize us," Lodon suggested.

"They just don't want to get caught in the fireball when we crash," Jaren corrected, "either that, or there's something on this planet worse than pirates." They felt a jarring impact followed by the constant buffeting of atmospheric turbulence.

"Entry successful," Jaynine stated with a note of pride in his synthesized voice, "Prepare for emergency landing." Jaren and Lodon looked on helplessly as Jaynine fought for control of the decelerating ship. They crossed the planet's penumbra, passing from daylight into night while Jaynine used the atmosphere to slow the ship's descent and began to look for a place to land. There were no signs of cities or spaceports, with only a few dim, sporadic sources of light glimmering from the planet's surface. After crossing a large range of mountains, Jaynine picked a region of relatively flat land consisting of forests and small fields for his final descent. The ship met the ground with an unceremonious jolt, tearing into the earth while sliding along its surface. The open field Jaynine had picked was too short to accommodate the _Meridian_'s velocity, and the ship snapped trees like twigs as it slid into the forest at the field's end, before finally coming to a stop.


	3. Chapter 3 - Local Law Enforcement

**III. Local Law Enforcement**

"What's the name of this planet again?" Lodon asked as he made his way down the tilted hallway, rubbing the back of his wide, flat neck.

"Eredenn VII," Jaren answered, "the databank says it's uninhabited, but the last reliable entry was made nearly twenty-three thousand years ago, in the early days of the Republic."

"Have you already put out a call to the Council for help?"

"We can't." The Jedi Master looked up from his computer terminal. "The pirates are still out there and they would easily pinpoint our location from a communication. Besides, Jaynine will have the _Meridian_ fixed before too long." He pointed his thumb over his shoulder towards the droid, who was intently watching a holo-display while conversing with the ship's computer through his interface arm.

"It will take me a week and a half to fix the drives," Jaynine declared. "We have all the parts we need onboard, but both drives will have to be fully dismantled and re-built."

"Well Lodon, let's get out and take a look at this place. The sensors say it's not much above freezing out there right now, so I suggest we start by making a fire."

It was difficult to squeeze out of the boarding ramp hatch, but once he did, Lodon was overjoyed to find himself in a light woodland forest. Although it was not teeming with life like the jungle forests of his early childhood, it was life nonetheless, and Lodon could sense the minute variations in the Force associated with the trees, plants, insects and animals in his vicinity.

"Look, quaking aspen," he said to Jaren as he pointed to a nearby group of trees, "these trees are all clones grown from a single root system that could be thousands of years old."

"That's nice, Lodon, but I'm looking for dead trees - firewood. See anything over there?" It was cold and clear, and the starlight provided enough illumination for Lodon to collect a few fallen logs. A few moments later they were sitting beside a glowing blaze, warming their hands and feet. Jaren had brought out other survival gear, including two outdoor cots, so that they could sleep beside the fire rather than in the onboard beds, which were tilted due to the ship's lopsided resting position. They took turns keeping watch, but by the time dawn arrived they were both fast asleep.

They awoke to the stamping of hoofed feet and the heavy breathing of quadrupeds. In the dawn mist, through the haze of the campfire, Lodon saw several figures dressed in well-worn metal armour mounted on large, antlered, elk-like animals of various colours. The charger carrying the foremost soldier, covered in steel plates much like that of its rider, took a few steps forward.

"Ho, you are trespassing on Lord Kydro's lands, peasants." The man had a strange, archaic accent, but that was not so unusual in the Outer Rim, where Basic was not always the most dominant language.

"You are under arrest, and your -" he looked up at the towering ship, "your shelter will be demolished summarily."

"As you can see from the trail you're walking on, we didn't intend to trespass," Jaren began, defensively. "We crash-landed here, and we'll only need a few days for repairs before we leave again. There's no need to arrest us."

"Crash-landed?" the man asked, looking both skeptical and confused at the same time, before his face hardened with conviction. "Lord Kydro accepts no violation of his law, no matter what the excuse. You will come with us or die here; it makes little difference to me." Jaren had slowly unhooked his lightsaber from his belt during the conversation, and he now ignited it in response to the threat.

The mounted soldiers flinched back in surprise, and some stared open-mouthed at the elegant weapon.

"I am a Jedi Knight and I am here at the bidding of the Jedi Council," Jaren warned, "Please stand down and do not force me to resort to violence to defend myself."

The leader, less intimidated than his retainers, stared hard at Jaren for a moment before responding.

"I have traveled very far in my time as the lord's captain," he responded, "but I have never heard of any lord named 'Jedi'. If you are a knight, why are you dressed as a peasant? Where is your armour? Where is your steed?" He began to dismount from his antlered beast as he continued to speak, using an antler as a handhold. "As for your blade, I've seen more impressive illusions by jesters in the lord's court." He unsheathed a beautifully decorated sword from a scabbard on his hip. "You want to duel Captain Droka of Hillcastle, serf? You have your wish."

Without waiting for an answer, the armoured man raised his sword and strode towards Jaren with surprising agility. Jaren raised the palm of his free hand towards Lodon, signaling for him not to interfere. The Jedi master dodged the first few attacks, leaping back and ducking beneath swings, allowing his opponent to tire himself. Eventually Jaren's retreat was blocked by the ship, and the larger man swung his weapon across in an inescapable horizontal sweep. Jaren parried with a swift slice of his own, neatly cleaving his opponent's blade in two. The upper part of the blade continued through the air until it fell against the ship's hull with a dull clang. Captain Droka, expecting to meet some kind of resistance to his strike, fell with the force of his own inertia. He raised himself slowly up on knee, staring at his severed sword.

"My apprentice and I will consent to traveling with you to see your lord, but we will go as guests, not as prisoners."

Using the ship's internal comm, Jaren explained the situation to Jaynine and instructed him to continue working on the ship. Jaren and Lodon were then shown into a wooden prison wagon with barred windows. The door was left unlocked, according to Jaren's previous instructions, and the two Jedi looked on with interest as the sun rose over the hills, forests and fields of the land they passed through. At first it was primarily wilderness, but soon they began to see haggard-looking people working the land by hand and with the help of antlered draft animals. The only buildings they saw were small one-room huts made from felled trees, blocks of turf and thatched straw. Though the morning was cool, they saw few signs of fire, or any other form of heat generation.

"They don't seem to know about space travel, or even repulsor technology," Lodon commented, "and why have they never heard of the Jedi?"

"Either this planet has not been visited in many years," Jaren conjectured, "or their lord is doing a fine job of maintaining ignorance in his realm. We will find out soon enough."

The procession passed into a forest, and the road followed a small meandering river down into a heavily wooded valley. After a few hours they emerged from the trees onto a flat plain that was dominated by a long, steep hill. The hill was not more than a hundred and fifty metres high, but a stone castle of impressive height and width had been built on top of it, creating an imposing sight to those looking up from below. The river looped around the side of the hill, where a low stone bridge had been built to cross it, in the shadow of the castle. Some of the surrounding fields were laid out into well-tended vineyards, others were dotted with large, domesticated herbivores known as nerfs, with their thick, shaggy winter fur still covering their heads and front quarters. The knights led Jaren and Lodon across the bridge to the backside of the castle, where a steep road led up to the castle's gate.

The road passed near the wall of the castle, so that it would be impossible for a large force to approach the gate without first facing a barrage from the castle's defenders. At first Jaren and Lodon thought the gate was rather meagre for such a large castle, but they soon realized that they had only passed into the outer defenses. The main gate was surrounded by two large round towers and had three openings, one big enough for carriages and mounted knights, and two small doors for pedestrians. The gates were preceded by a deep dry moat, but the drawbridges had long ago been replaced with well-worn stone bridges. Evidently the castle's strategic position was so strong that it had not felt the threat of war in some time. It was well-guarded, nonetheless, with many crossbowmen walking the walls and pikemen watching the gates.

As they passed through the towering forecastle, the Jedi companions realized that this stronghold was not only a defensive structure. It was a complete community, with small fields for sheep and a few nerfs, and houses and shops of all kinds neatly stacked in every imaginable space. The castle structures followed those of the hill, so that most walls were at odd angles to each other and there were few areas with perfectly level ground. The convoy of knights followed one of the main roads, which made its way downward beneath an enclosed bridge connecting two buildings before turning and rising again as it approached a three-storied manor house. The train of pack animals stopped, and the men began to dismount. Grooms emerged from nearby buildings and took the reins of the antlered beasts, leading them away to the stables. Captain Droka opened the wagon door while several of the other knights watched closely, their swords and pole-arms in hand. They led the Jedi inside the manor to a large, decorated hall, where a well-dressed man sat on a large wooden chair on a raised platform. He was listening intently to a teenage girl standing in front of him to his left, while a middle-aged man looked on from his right.

"But how can we pay the fifteen sheaves, my lord, when Sir Goffrid barely gives us enough land to feed even ourselves? My father could not be here today because if he misses one day in the fields, we may not have food next winter."

"Sir Goffrid is free to do with the lands I have entrusted to him as he sees fit. Since your father has not come today, I will keep you here as ransom until he pays his rents."

"But we're only just putting the seeds in the ground! You can't keep me here until harvest - my family needs me!" The room was filled with young nobles and knights who had been talking amongst themselves, but now fell silent as they turned towards the peasant girl daring to talk back to her lord.

"What is your name, again, girl?" The lord asked quietly, breaking the icy silence.

"Seyja Novar" she said quietly, but with confidence.

"Well, Seyja, I suggest you surrender yourself quietly to my jailor before I decide to punish your outburst."

"We are starving, my lord, isn't that punishment enough?"

"You were given your chance. Guards, ten lashes." Almost instantaneously two men stepped forward and grabbed the girl's shoulders while a third raised his arm and snapped it forward.

"No!" Jaren's shout was mixed with the girl's cry as the whip struck her back. The room had been quiet before, now it was eerily silent. "You will not strike a helpless innocent again," Jaren said to the whip-holder.

"Strike!" the lord commanded, screaming at his subject. The soldier snapped his arm forward, but the whip never reached its target, and instead swung back and struck him in the face as Jaren raised his arm and called upon the Force. Another short silence followed as the man touched the cut on his cheek, and then suddenly the cry "Warlock! Warlock!" came from all sides, along with the metallic ring of swords being pulled from their scabbards.

Lodon heard the snap and hiss of Jaren's lightsaber coming to life and decided to follow suit as armed guards and knights closed in on all sides.

"Watch out for those crossbows," Jaren warned, as a bolt glanced off of the stone floor not far from their feet. A second bolt made a sizzling noise as it vaporized on Lodon's blade, blocked before it could reach his master.

"I warn you all, stand down," Jaren called out. "Ask your captain what these blades are capable of."

"Warlocks must not be allowed to live," the captain stated boldly, holding a long pike out in front of himself, his courage renewed by the large number of soldiers now surrounding him.

While Jaren was a veteran of several battles, Lodon had only ever fought in the safety of the Jedi dueling diamond. The closest plant-life was some ivy growing on the outside wall of the manor, but it was too far away to be of any use. The Ithorian overturned the nearest table to impede some of his attackers, but others closed in from both sides.

"Fear not, Lodon, you are a Jedi apprentice, and will one day be a Jedi knight. Keep your back to me, and remember your training. And don't worry, there will be no disqualifications for injuring your opponent in this match."

All at once the surrounding knights charged with a combined yell. Lodon ducked the first slash aimed in his direction, then side-stepped an overhead chop, but found that his evasive actions had placed him directly in the path of an assailant preparing a diagonal downward sweep. There was no time to parry, and Lodon simply acted on survival instinct. He launched a quick but fierce counterattack, and grimaced as his lightsaber sliced cleanly through a plate of steel armour, a mail shirt, and the flesh and bone of a man's upper arm. The unsuspecting knight howled in shock and confusion, staring with unbelieving eyes at the ground, where his hand still clutched his sword.

Lodon had no time to lament his decision as a rush of footsteps approached from his right-hand side. He turned to face a guard with a large metal shield bearing down on him. The Ithorian attempted to spin out of the way, but the shield clipped his back and sent him sprawling. He looked up to find yet another sword slicing down towards his chest, but it was deflected at the last instant by a dark blue lightsaber blade. Jaren kicked the assailant in the chest and helped Lodon to his feet before returning to his own battle with a deadly flurry. Four more knights crowded around Lodon, including the shield-bearer, when a loud cry of "Halt!" rang out through the hall.

All heads turned to the lord, standing in front of his throne, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles shone white in contrast to his olive skin.

"Knights, lower your weapons," he said, glaring at the soldiers and their captain. The men hesitated, but obeyed, letting their swords drop down so that they pointed towards the stone floor. "Release the girl," he instructed the guards to his side. Lodon heard the sharp hiss of Jaren's lightsaber retracting, but maintained his battle stance, fearing the lord might change his mind on a whim. The freed girl ran past both the lord's men and the Jedi, and then through the open door.

"So you think you know better than the lord of these lands, do you, strange knight?" the lord said maliciously, staring at Jaren. "Where are you from?"

"I represent the Jedi Order, from the planet Coruscant," the master replied, knowing he would have to explain.

"Planet?" the lord raised his eyebrows in question. Jaren grabbed two round fruits off of a nearby table and attempted to explain basic solar system astronomy to the lord.

"We arrived in a ship that travels through the sky, and we only intend to stay a few days, until it is repaired." The lord's eyes lit up slightly, but quickly returned to their interrogative demeanor. "As Jedi Knights, however, it is our duty to support the weak and promote justice wherever we travel, whether we arrive by intention or accident. Now we cannot leave until we are sure those not in power are treated equitably."

"You wish to treat the serfs like nobles?" the lord asked, his voice slightly incredulous. "Ridiculous. But I can see you will not easily be ignored, Jedi. I have a proposition for you. Since you are clearly skilled with a blade, I challenge you to a duel. The weapon will be the longsword. Three days from now we will meet in the castle green, and fight to the death. The winner will become, or remain, the Lord of Hillcastle."

Lodon lowered his lightsaber blade and looked over to his master. He saw, as he feared, that Jaren's eyes had steeled with determination.

"I accept your challenge, Lord Kydro," he responded, recalling the lord's name from Captain Droka's use of it earlier in the day.

"May I learn the name of my opponent, and his squire?" the lord asked politely, yet still with an edge of malice.

"I am Jedi Master Jaren Cregg, and this is my apprentice, the Ithorian Lodon M'thar."

* * *

"Don't you think it's a little dangerous, master, dueling a lord in front of all his supporters and minions? And what about this longsword? It's so much heavier and clumsier than a lightsaber, you can't swing it as fast and it overbalances your body. Aren't you worried that he might win? Or cheat?"

"The Force is my ally, young apprentice. This is not the first time I have stared death in the face. If I should fall, then contact Kaydree Ordell, the Jedi watchman for this sector. For now, however," Jaren spoke as he lifted the sword given to him by Lord Kydro, "you need to help me practice with this archaic metal blade."

"Novar," Jaren exhaled, out of breath from a round of practice dueling with Lodon, "that's a Corellian name."

"Hm?" his apprentice responded, failing to follow his master's murmured train of thought.

"That girl in the manor yesterday, she said her name was Seyja Novar. Novar is a Corellian surname, and Seyja sounds Corellian to me as well."

"There are so many names in the galaxy that there are bound be coincidental duplications here and there. And I've never heard of Kydro or Droka being used as Corellian surnames," Lodon pointed out.

"Yes, but they still sound like they _could_ be Corellian," Jaren replied. "Ah well, I suppose you're right," he muttered as he lifted his sword and swung it in a forward arc towards his waiting apprentice. "Time to get back to work."


	4. Chapter 4 - The Duel

**IV. ****The Duel**

After three days of intense practice, Jaren felt well-prepared to face his opponent, who was slightly older and somewhat overweight. It had taken the Jedi Master a full day to get used to swinging a sword while wearing armour, but he had become quite proficient in his brief hours of practice. He had even sparred with some of the squires using practice wasters, and had easily defeated them, despite their years of training. A large crowd had gathered around the castle green, with faces peering out of nearby windows and children sitting on their parents' shoulders to watch the rare spectacle of a death duel. The shrill tone of a small set of bagpipes wafted from the manor door, and a drummer led the lord and his retainers down to the dueling area.

Lord Kydro's armour was buffed to an impressive shine, almost too bright to look at in direct sunlight. Fortunately for Jaren, the castle green was shaded by a number of tall, ancient elm trees. The lord was not a small man, but his armour made him look far broader and more rotund than he actually was. His dark hair waved gently in the light breeze while he held his helmet under his arm, waiting for the crier to reach the centre of the green and dictate the terms of the duel.

"I spoke with Jaynine this morning," Lodon informed Jaren. "It will still take him another week to finish re-building the engines. The good news is that long-distance scans show no sign of other ships in this system. It sounds like the pirates have moved on."

"I wonder what my first decree should be, as Lord of Hillcastle," Jaren pondered out loud. "Immediate termination of the position might result in a power vacuum or the collapse of the whole society."

"First you have to defeat Lord Kydro," Lodon reminded his master, "and he appears to be a veteran swordsman."

At last the crier called the combatants to the green, where they met and shook hands before donning their helmets and gauntlets. The battle commenced with the ring of steel against steel, and before long it became clear that Lord Kydro had the upper hand over his foreign opponent. Some onlookers seemed pleased by this, but most seemed to favour neither of the two opponents: one a tyrant that they hated, the other a stranger that they did not know. The spectacle of combat was what held their interest, and they cheered when either individual mounted an impressive attack. Jaren barely managed to maintain his footing against a series of slow, powerful swings, and was forced to back-pedal in a wide circular pattern in order to fend off his larger opponent. Eventually a break was called, and both men were allowed to sit and rest for a few minutes.

"He's tiring, I can feel it," Jaren told Lodon between heavy breaths.

"So are you, master," Lodon responded. "Even Master Windu would agree that Lord Kydro is a skilled swordsman. How do you plan to defeat him?"

"I have yet to call on the Force," Jaren explained, "I wanted to see how I would fare against him on my own before ending his reign."

"The other day they called you 'warlock' after you used the Force against the guards. They said warlocks must not be allowed to live. If the lord knows you can use the Force, why would he challenge you to a duel?"

A whistle blew, signaling the end of the break, and Jaren returned to the green without answering the question. As the opponents began trading blows again, it quickly became clear that Lord Kydro had been restraining himself in the first round of fighting. He now swung his sword in swift, downward diagonal arcs that were difficult for Jaren to parry. Kydro's face reddened with anger as he unleashed a barrage of overhead chops, forcing Jaren to use his off hand as a brace on the upper part of the blade of his sword, his arms outstretched over his head.

"You think you can meddle in the affairs of any realm that happens to cross your path?" the lord yelled at Jaren. "You'll be sorry you ever tried to ruin Hillcastle. You are no better than the rest of us."

With a sudden movement Lord Kydro retracted his sword and lunged towards Jaren's midsection. The Jedi master was only able to avoid being impaled by calling on the Force and leaping high into the air, flipping over top of his assailant and landing behind him. The people in the surrounding crowd gasped and murmurs of "Warlock!" could be heard throughout the green. Jaren landed heavily, unused to the considerable weight of the armour, but he had the presence of mind to bend low and lean against the back of his opponent's legs, staving off further attacks. Lord Kydro fell heavily while cries of "Unfair!" and "Shame!" rose up from the crowd. Despite the protests, the move was admissible according to the rules of engagement, and no one intervened as Jaren brought his sword to bear over the lord's prone body. Lord Kydro rolled over and raised himself up on one knee, pausing both to recover from his fall and to face the Jedi master, who now had a significant advantage over him. A grim silence fell over the crowd as they prepared to witness the execution of their ruler.

"Be swift, _warlock_," the lord spat the word with a tone of unbridled malevolence, "I do not wish to prolong the indignity of defeat." Jaren paused for a moment, unsure of what to do for the first time in many weeks. He looked up to his apprentice, whose visage of concern assured the Jedi master that there was only one possible course of action. He let the tip of his sword fall earthward, and stuck it in the ground.

"The days of death are over, Kydro. You will live, but you will no longer‑" With a sudden burst of energy, the kneeling lord reached up under his breastplate, and a blue bolt shot out and struck Jaren in the chest, leaving a gaping hole in his otherwise pristine armour.

"No!" Lodon yelled, but too late to intervene. Calling on the Force, he leaped high above the crowd and ignited his lightsaber, landing with his feet planted on either side of the fallen body of his master. He now saw the source of the bolt, an archaic blaster attached to a cord that disappeared beneath the back plate of the lord's bulky armour. The crowd stood in stunned silence, unable to comprehend what had just taken place. None, besides the lord himself, had ever seen or even imagined the existence of a blaster, a technology unknown to their simple way of life.

Lord Kydro fired a few experimental shots at Lodon, which he easily deflected harmlessly away. The crowd was even more awed by this display of prowess, but had little time to appreciate it, as their Lord immediately yelled "Disperse! Back to your work!" before turning and storming off to the manor.

As the crowd began to leave, Lodon bent down to check on his master. While he was badly hurt, it appeared that the armour had obstructed enough of the bolt to spare Jaren from an immediately fatal wound. Lodon put his hand on Jaren and reached out to the Force in an attempt to heal him, but found that the wound was beyond his capacity.

"We will have to take him to the Seven Sisters," a female voice stated factually from over Lodon's shoulder. "That will be his only chance for survival." Lodon turned to see the girl that Jaren had intervened to protect in the lord's hall a few days before. She was leading a pair of shaggy, blue-grey oxen-like beasts called bordoks that were yoked to a wooden cart. Realizing the urgency of the situation, Lodon refrained from asking questions and simply motioned for her to help him lift Jaren onto the cart. They then set off through the throngs of people who were still talking excitedly about the duel while returning to their daily routines.

"So who are the Seven Sisters?" Lodon asked, once they were a safe distance from the castle walls, heading back towards the forested river valley. He had applied a medpac to Jaren's wound, but the Jedi master's temperature was high and his breathing shallow.

"They're a group of women that live in the forest. Young girls go to join them if they're found to be... sensitive." She sat on a bench built into the front of the cart, while Lodon sat on a small pile of hay next to Jaren, who was laying down in the back.

"Sensitive?"

"Those that have special gifts, like telling the future, or being able to tame wild animals," she said turning her head to the side so that she could see Lodon over her shoulder.

"I see," Lodon responded thoughtfully, "so where do young men go, if they're sensitive?"

"You mean warlocks? They're killed if they do not hide their abilities from everyone, even their own families. Many ages ago, warlocks rose to power in these lands, and terrible battles were fought that caused more death and devastation than had ever been seen before. Finally the people began putting young warlocks to death, before they became too powerful."

Seyja paused while Lodon pondered the possibilities. "The only reason Lord Kydro didn't kill you immediately is because he couldn't - your powers are too well developed, your strange swords are unstoppable, and there are two of you. The warlocks of legend always fought against each other, and never worked together.

"It seems, however, that the lord has some power of his own that is beyond even warlocks. I think he needed time to get it ready, and that's why he proposed the duel. Now that he has defeated a warlock in public, no one will dare to challenge him again. He was a ruthless despot before, now he will become a conquering tyrant."

"That 'power' was just an archaic blaster. If my master had been using his lightsaber, he would have simply deflected the bolt harmlessly away. But with the heavy sword and armour, he couldn't move fast enough to block it."

"I'm sure that was part of Lord Kydro's plan. He is nothing if not cunning."

Their conversation halted as Jaren began to groan and vocalize in his feverish sleep. "Glade... I'm sorry. Teela... Glade, I'm... I'm so sorry." He muttered a few more indecipherable syllables and then fell back to his comatose state.

"Who are Glade and Teela?" Seyja asked with a puzzled look on her face.

"I don't know, but Master Clegg did mention that at one time he was married, and had a daughter. I've only been his apprentice for a few days, and we haven't had much time to talk."

Their conversation fell silent as they entered the forested river valley that Jaren and Lodon had traveled through on their way to Hillcastle. Instead of following the river back towards their ship, however, they turned off on a side-road and crossed a low wooden bridge, following a lesser-worn trail leading deep into the forest. Lodon continued to tend to Jaren, washing his face with cool, clear water from the river and applying fresh antiseptic bandages to the wound on his chest. In the late afternoon they came to a steep, narrow canyon that had been carved by a forest stream. Seyja stopped the cart and tied up the bordoks, grabbing a steel headed hatchet from under her seat as she dismounted.

"We'll have to carry him from here," she said as she walked over to a nearby sapling and proceeded to chop it down. Lodon restrained himself from reacting to what most Ithorians would have considered to be a brutal act of violence. His people were not opposed to ending the lives of plants if it was necessary, but they typically carried out a short ritual of respect beforehand, and were not so brutal in the execution. Seyja had some twine in the cart, which they used to bind branches to the two saplings she had cut and stripped. They loaded Jaren onto the make-shift litter and carried him down a narrow path into the steep canyon.

As they descended, Lodon could hear the distant echo of a waterfall. Moss grew on the canyon walls, and the path became slick and muddy as they neared the growing roar. Eventually they reached the source of the noise, a thin but powerful waterfall that poured into a dark, serene pool where small fish flitted back and forth near the surface.

"The Sisters live just up there," Seyja said, pointing to the canyon walls that towered high above the source of the falls. Lodon noticed that windows had been carved into the cliff face, looking out over the path they were walking on. The final approach to their sanctuary required climbing a steep set of steps that had been carved into the canyon wall to the left of the waterfall. Carrying Jaren safely up the slippery rock staircase was difficult, especially since the light of day was quickly fading. They ascended the last steps as the sun set behind the trees, where they were met by a handful of long-haired figures dressed in simple white robes.

"What is his ailment?" an older woman asked, as she stepped forward to meet the strangers. The Sisters wasted little time when someone was in need of their skills. She took a quick look at Jaren's wound, felt his forehead and gave a set of quiet, concise orders to the others standing behind her. As they turned and ran, Lodon could see that some of them were just girls, only a little older than the younglings of the Jedi Temple. When he turned back towards the older woman, he discovered she had been staring at him, and he was reminded of how unique his appearance was to the denizens of this isolated planet. He also realized that he had taken Seyja's friendliness for granted; he was so used to humans treating him as an ordinary citizen of the galaxy that he had found it perfectly natural when Seyja did the same.

Lodon and Seyja carried Jaren into the stone-carved rooms of the Sisters' cloister, following the elder sister's lead. After they had transferred him to a bed, six other women entered the room, and Lodon watched as they joined hands in a circle around the prone Jedi master. Suddenly he felt a powerful surge in the Force that was completely unfamiliar to him. Before long, he was so overwhelmed with the sheer intensity of it that he had to leave the room. When his head cleared a little, he looked up to see that Seyja had followed him, and that one of the young girls dressed in white was standing nearby, watching him hesitantly.

"Can I touch it?" the girl asked Seyja innocently, her outstretched finger pointing at Lodon.

"You can ask him yourself," Seyja responded with a smile, "his name is Lodon."

Lodon nodded, and the girl brushed her hand against his leathery, mottled brown skin. After a moment she turned and ran to a knot of other girls watching from a doorway. An older teenage girl brought food and water to Lodon and Seyja.

"You seem different from other people around here," Lodon said to Seyja as they finished eating. "You are bold where others are timid, and you seem very knowledgeable for a serf, if that's what you are."

"I am a serf," she responded with confidence, "but I come from a good family. A monk taught my father to read, and my father taught us when we were old enough. He has a modest collection of books, and I've read them all. If I'm bold it's because I have knowledge. I've read history and philosophy, and I know that Lord Kydro's method is not the only way to govern a fiefdom."

Just then the door to Jaren's room opened, and the Seven Sisters filed out. The last one to leave was the elder who had met Lodon and Seyja when they arrived.

"He will be fine by morning," she stated, stopping to address Lodon. "I'm sure you must be tired, beds have been made for you in the guest rooms. I will ask and answer questions in the morning."

One of the younger girls showed Seyja and Lodon to their rooms, where they slept soundly through the night.


	5. Chapter 5 - New Perspectives

**V. New Perspectives**

Lodon awoke to complete darkness and the distant, dull roar of the waterfall. His room was deep within the Seven Sisters' complex, far from the windows that provided natural light for the daily tasks they carried out to keep themselves clothed and fed. He descended the stairs to the main floor to find Seyja eating a viscous grey liquid in the sunlight.

"Hey, Lodon," she said between mouthfuls, "You're wanted in Jaren's room."

He walked through the open door to find his master sitting up in bed, eating the same breakfast as Seyja. He looked much better, but still wore a small bandage on his chest.

"Lodon! You were right, I underestimated Lord Kydro. But where did he get a blaster? He didn't even know what a ship or a planet was a few days ago." Lodon wasn't surprised to find that his master's sharp mind was already in action, despite his body's weakened condition.

"That blaster was an archaic beam-tube model, the kind that require an independent power supply," Lodon replied. "I think he must have been wearing a power pack on his back, underneath his armour."

"Where did he find an antique like that? He must've inherited it from some distant ancestor who traded a few nerfs for it a millennium ago. Anyway, I've decided that Kydro needs to be de-throned. He'll be unstoppable with a blaster on a planet like this, with only basic metal-forging technology. His subjects should be happy to join ranks and lay siege to Hillcastle, considering the way he treats them."

"Lay siege to Hillcastle? What about the _Meridian_ and the bacta? And what about contacting the Jedi Watchman and investigating those pirates?"

"I spoke with Jaynine already. The _Meridian_ will still take several days to complete, and the bacta is already safe on Desevro – Jaynine was able to pick-up a Holonews broadcast on the transceiver. It's still dangerous to try to contact the watchman – without a working ship we're easy prey if the pirates happen to intercept our communication. Anyway, all of that can wait. The pirates and the watchman will still be there after Kydro is gone."

"Master, are you sure you're not being vindictive? Lord Kydro is no threat to the Jedi Order, or the rest of the galaxy."

Jaren's eyebrows knitted themselves in thought before he gave his measured response.

"Every being in the galaxy deserves justice and freedom, even those that live on some distant rock where those concepts have not yet been fully developed."

Later in the morning, Jaren, Lodon and Seyja met with the Seven Sisters. They sat on wooden chairs set in a circle, with no distinction made between the guests and their hosts.

"I am Elendrin, eldest of the Seven Sisters. Please tell us where you come from and how you sustained your injuries."

In response, Jaren repeated his brief description of rudimentary astronomy and recounted how the _Prime Meridian_ crash-landed on their planet, Eredenn VII. He also explained the events leading up to his duel with Lord Kydro, but he asked Lodon to describe the duel itself, as well as the following trip to the Sisters' refuge. Elendrin asked about Lodon's origins, and he was happy to tell her about Ithor and the _Tafanda Bay_, the herdship where he spent his early years before leaving for the Jedi Temple. The sisters then asked Jaren several questions about the Jedi Order and the Force, which he gladly explained to them. After Seyja answered a few questions about her background, the conversation turned to the future.

"What will you do, now that we have healed you?" one of the other sisters asked pointedly.

"We will raise an army, and lay siege to Hillcastle until Lord Kydro is forced to resign and allow a democracy to take his place," Jaren answered without hesitation.

"We do not condone violence, unless there is no other choice," another of the sisters responded. "We would be glad if you could repay us by avoiding a conflict, or at least by considering other options. You are free to do as you wish, of course, we simply ask you to keep an open mind."

Jaren looked to Lodon, Seyja and then to Elendrin. "Alright, we will not raise an army, at least not yet. It's clear that Lord Kydro is more than a simple backwater despot, so we'll do our best to learn everything we can about him. Lodon and I will sneak back into Hillcastle and have a good look around before taking any further action."

"That is acceptable to us," Elendrin responded, "As long as you promise not to assassinate Lord Kydro. While we don't agree with his practices, killing him would only lead to a violent power struggle between the remaining noble families."

"Fine, no assassinations," Jaren said in a deflated tone, but with a slight grin on his face.

"Before you leave," Elendrin asked, "would you be kind enough to give us a demonstration of Jedi techniques in manipulating the... the Force?"

"Of course," Jaren replied, "I think it would best be done outside, where there's a bit more space."

Jaren and Lodon stood facing each other with the Seven Sisters and the younger girls standing in a wide semi-circle. There was a collective intake of breath when they ignited their lightsabers and began to spar. They demonstrated the high leaps and flips that were frequently employed in lightsaber combat. After a few minutes, Jaren disengaged and began using the Force to hurl small pebbles at Lodon. The Ithorian calmly sidestepped the stones and vaporized them with his lightsaber. Suddenly the Jedi master lifted a heavy, dripping boulder out of the nearby stream and directed it towards his apprentice. Lodon responded by pushing back against it, creating a battle of wills in the Force. The audience once again seemed taken aback, and applauded when the duel ended with apprentice and master working together to toss the boulder back into the fast-moving water.

"How can a single person move such a large rock?" one of the sisters inquired when they had finished.

"What do you mean? Are you not capable of the same?" Jaren asked in response. The women shook their heads quietly.

"As individuals, we are capable of small, minor manipulations," Elendrin explained, "We are only able to carry out larger tasks by working together. We found long ago that we were far stronger when we acted as a group than when we acted alone, and we have spent many generations since then learning how to best combine and integrate our manipulations."

"Well, perhaps after we find out more about Lord Kydro we will return and learn some of your techniques, if you will teach us," Jaren stated with sincerity. "For now, however, we must be on our way."

In order to help Seyja and the Jedi appear more innocuous, the Sisters supplied enough bundles of wool to fill the bordok-cart. This created a hiding place for Lodon and Jaren, in case they crossed paths with Lord Kydro's knights, and also provided Seyja with the means to pay her family's unrepentant landlord, Sir Goffrid. Jaren promised to find a way to repay the Sisters for their generosity despite their insistence that the gift was no great sacrifice on their part.

The return trip to Hillcastle was uneventful, and it was well after nightfall when they finally reached the steep cliff-face beneath the castle wall. The lower part of the cliff was covered with trees, and was easy to climb, but the Jedi knights had to use the Force to assist them in making their way up the steep upper slopes, where only thin grasses and small gnarled shrubs could grow. Once at the base of the castle, they waited for the torches of the watchmen to pass, then leapt high over the parapet and landed silently on the castle wall. They wore hooded cloaks given to them by the Seven Sisters, which they pulled up over their heads before hurrying down the stairs into the streets of the castle town.

They headed for the manor, where they guessed the main hall would be empty. Lodon reached out through the Force to a shoot of ivy growing on the manor wall and used it to unlock a latched window. He then had the ivy vines grow in size while also improving their grip on the stone wall so that he and Jaren could use them to climb up to the now-open second floor window. As they suspected, the large room was quiet and empty, and the two Jedi stealthily made their way into an adjoining hallway. They discovered a stairwell and used it to descend past the first floor and into the Lord's wine cellar. There they made themselves comfortable and went to sleep, waiting for Lord Kydro to wake so that they could observe his actions and movements.

* * *

Seyja's ponderous bordoks made their way up the dark castle road and reached the gate, which was closed for the night. She slept on the wool in the back, and woke up to the bright trilling of songbirds in the early dawn. When she approached the gate with her bordok-cart, one of the guards gave her a strange look, and then opened the large doors to let her through. As she passed into the castle, she heard a voice shouting "Oy, that's her, Seyja Novar! Grab her!" Before she had a chance to react, a rough hand had grabbed her ankle, and a soldier on an antlered mount blocked her path. She shook her ankle loose, kicking a guard in the face in the process, and then stood up on her cart.

"I'll come down without a fight, just make sure my bordoks get food and water." The soldier blocking her path nodded respectfully and signalled for the guards to let her dismount on her own. They locked her hands into a wooden block and led her to the castle dungeon, where she was put in a cell with several other female prisoners. A few minutes later, the jailer called her out and led her up to the main hall, where she had first encountered Jaren and Lodon.

"Where are the warlocks, Seyja? Remember that whatever your answer is, Revy here will verify its truth afterwards." Lord Kydro pointed to a thin, gaunt-faced man who held a long whip in his hand. "This time, those false knights won't be able to stop him from carrying out his duty."

"You're wrong, Kydro," Seyja responded, deliberately omitting his title, "They're right here in the castle, and they'll skin you alive if I am harmed in any way."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take," the lord said with a smirk, "I defeated them once, I'll defeat them again."

Seyja was taken back to the dungeon for interrogation, and a small group of peasants, both men and women, was ushered into the majestic hall.

"Guards, leave us, I'm in no danger from these humble subjects." After the guards had departed, Kydro became more congenial. He had not remained the lord of Hillcastle through strength of will alone – these apparent peasants were in fact his spies and bodyguards, who protected him from assassination and insurrection.

"The warlocks have returned and are hiding somewhere inside the castle. Find out where they are, but don't approach them, they are far too dangerous."

* * *

Lodon awoke to a rustling sound originating not far from where he slept. He looked out between two boxes to see a short, middle-aged man wrestling with a large, heavy barrel. His first instinct was to help the man, but then he remembered that he and his master were hiding, and besides, the man would most likely flee in fear at the unfamiliar appearance of an Ithorian. He waited until the man finally left with the barrel, then arose to stretch his legs and look around. Despite being a cellar, there were several doors and stairwells leading out of the large room. In the end, Lodon decided it was best to simply keep watch while Jaren slept peacefully. They were in no real hurry, and his master clearly needed the rest.

* * *

"They are in the wine cellar, my lord, as I suspected. I don't know how they got in, but I'm not surprised to find that they have picked possibly the best hiding place in the castle."

"That will work nicely. Tell Captain Droka I want him and five of his best men here immediately." Lord Kydro handed the man a small bag of coins and watched as he hurried out to follow the orders.

* * *

Later that day, after Jaren had woken and they were deciding how best to proceed with investigating the castle, voices came from the stairwell leading down to the cellar. Lodon couldn't believe their luck when he recognized the distinct timbre of Lord Kydro's voice as he walked past the stacked wine barrels.

"Don't worry Droka, we have a weapon more powerful than a hundred catapults. Lord Geerno will lay siege to us, only to watch his knights and soldiers die outside our castle walls."

Jaren held up his hand until Kydro and Droka had passed through the cellar, exiting through a distant door. A few moments later, Jaren and Lodon followed them through the door and found a stairwell leading down. It led to a small, narrow room that was apparently no longer used. Dust and cobwebs covered everything, and a second staircase entered the room from the opposite direction. The footsteps of the lord and the captain of the guard rang softly in the hallway ahead. Jaren knelt down and knocked his knuckle against the floor.

"Sounds like durasteel," he said with surprise, "it's hollow underneath."

They heard a strange creaking noise in the distance, and then the sound of footsteps descending a ladder. They soon came upon a round hatch door in the hallway floor that had been left open. Jaren and Lodon hid in the nearby shadows, and it wasn't long before Kydro and Droka returned and retraced their steps back the way they had come. After several minutes hd passed, the two Jedi quietly made their way to the hatch, slowly lifted it back open, and descended down into the darkness below.


	6. Chapter 6 - The Banyan Forest

**VI. The Banyan Forest**

Jaren and Lodon each pulled out a glowrod and began looking around. The chamber they stood in was dusty, but it was immediately clear that its walls were made of durasteel. Passages led away in three directions, each with a small door that could be used to seal it off. They took the route directly in front of them, passing through a braced metal tunnel, and then through another doorway into a large cavern.

"It's a ship!" Lodon said, as he began to recognize the controls and layout of the open chamber. "This is the bridge. The door we came through must be an emergency escape hatch." He dusted off one of the consoles. "I can't read this writing," he said to Jaren, "It isn't written using the Aurebesh. It's some strange script."

Jaren took his time, and was more cautious about jumping to conclusions, and reserved his judgement until after he inspected the symbols Lodon had uncovered.

"It's ancient Corellian. I've only ever seen it once or twice before. Corellia was one of the first systems to adopt Basic as a primary language."

"Can you read it?"

"Enough to know that you were right: this is a ship. Here's the test relay for the main reactor." Before Jaren could stop him, Lodon pulled the lever. A faint mechanical whine made its way back to them from some distant corner of the ship and a moment later all of the bridge consoles lit up, glowing dimly through the dust.

"Look, everything's still operational, except for the hyperdrive and some breaches in the hull," Lodon said, pointing at a screen with a schematic and technical readout of the ship. "It seems like this was some kind of massive transport, there's certainly a lot of cargo space."

Jaren walked over to the pilot's console and dusted it off. "This ship has been here for more than twenty-five thousand years, since the early days of the Republic. The Corellians must have crash-landed it here and decided it wasn't worth saving, even though it can still fly."

"Fly?"

The voice took Lodon and Jaren completely by surprise. Lord Kydro stepped out of the darkness into the path of Jaren's searching glowrod beam. Captain Droka was behind him, as well as three more armed men. As the Jedi reached for their lightsabers, Kydro held his hands up in a sign of peace.

"There is no need for violence, good knights, as long as you cooperate. Bring her in." The sound of boots on durasteel deckplates rang through the ship, and two more guards entered, holding Seyja between them.

"If you disobey me, my soldiers will ensure she dies before you can save her. I knew this was some kind of battle station, but I didn't realize it could fly. Let me see if I can make it work." Kydro sat down at one of the consoles and began touching buttons.

"No!" Jaren interjected, resetting the controls to their neutral values. "If this ship moves abruptly, the castle might collapse, and many of your soldiers would be killed."

"Fine, you make it fly then." Kydro briefly cast his gaze at Seyja, reminding the Jedi of what was at stake if he didn't obey the command.

Jaren sat down in the main piloting console and began to familiarize himself with the ship. He could make sense of most of the old Corellian labels and symbols, and he was an experienced pilot, but he had not flown without Jaynine's assistance for many years. Lord Kydro and Captain Droka watched studiously over his shoulder, carefully observing the sequences of symbols that Jaren pressed as he coaxed the ship to life.

"Lodon, man the auxiliary thruster array and ensure our yaw axis doesn't rotate more than one point five degrees." Lodon followed the instructions, and a moment later he felt a slight disturbance in the Force. He looked up to see that his master's eyes were closed in deep concentration, his mind focused on some distant target.

It took Jaren and Lodon several minutes to become comfortable with the archaic capital ship, but eventually they were able to slowly lift off. The ground around the castle rumbled and began to break away.

* * *

The cry "Earthquake!" echoed through Hillcaslte's busy streets as citizens raced to avoid falling stones and the fissures opening up between the ship's hull and the ground. It was still early morning in the castle, and the merchants were just beginning to set up their stalls in the market. Goods of all kinds spilled out of their bowls and baskets as people tried to steady themselves. A crack formed in the road up to the castle, which then became a deep crevasse and finally a sheer cliff-face as the ship finally tore free of its earthen shell.

Soil and plants fell away from the bridge viewport as the ship lifted off, providing those on board with a magnificent view of the fields surrounding Hillcastle.

"A flying castle," Lord Kydro muttered to himself in disbelief. "Take us to Dunvale, on the other side of that distant ridge," he commanded, pointing off to the right. "Lord Geerno won't ever threaten me again."

Jaren followed the order, but he didn't accelerate past docking speed for fear of collapsing the structures of Hillcastle and injuring its citizens. Even with his careful piloting, Jaren and the others could hear the irregular dull pounding of building stones striking the hull from above. On the ground, serfs were staring up at them with disbelief, trying to understand how their local landmark was passing overhead like some strange, graceful sky-whale.

After a few minutes of silence, the communications array lit up with an alert, and Lodon saw that the sensors had detected an incoming vessel. He was wondering what other ship could possibly be navigating the airspace above such a primitive planet when he suddenly felt a huge surge in the Force, much like what he had experienced when the Seven Sisters had healed Jaren. A moment later he realized that the transport was no longer responding to his controls, and that it had somehow been completely stabilized. He turned to Jaren, who simply gave him a quick knowing smile. A few minutes later the other ship had disappeared completely from the sensor readout.

Going to Dunvale from Hillcastle was a long, winding journey through steep river valleys when traveling over land, but flight avoided these obstacles, and soon Lord Kydro was directing Jaren to land the ship near Lord Geerno's fortified manor. Most of the people in the nearby fields and villages were scattering in all directions, while a few others stood and stared at the immense shadow descending upon them. Lord Kydro was able to decipher the ship's weapon controls, and as they neared the ground, he fired a few cannon blasts over top of the manor house. He laughed when he saw Lord Geerno himself staring with unbelief from an upper balcony.

"Up to the castle green," Lord Kydro commanded his knights. "We'll assemble an armed host to formally accept Geerno's surrender. You two first," he said, turning to Jaren and Lodon, who left their places and led the way to the surface, followed by a set of guards, Seyja, more guards, and finally Kydro and Droka.

As he descended the stairs from Hillcastle's manor hall, Lodon saw that the _Prime Meridian_ had landed on the castle green, and that the Seven Sisters had arrived with it. They had collectively used the Force to stabilize the massive vessel while it was in flight, and now that it was safe once again they had turned their attention to those who had been injured by falling objects.

"Halt! Stay where you are, tyrant!" Elendrin was standing with her head held high, and her long white locks blowing slightly in the wind. "You'll cause no more harm here today."

"Guards, seize this old woman who dares to challenge me in my own castle!"

A number of guards rushed forward, but as they closed in the Sisters focused their wills and a massive Force wave knocked them all to the ground. Lord Kydro's face reddened and his voice echoed out across the green.

"Citizens! I order you to kill these aberrations who have invaded our castle! They are not welcome here!"

The people looked up at their lord with wonder, still trying to understand what was happening. None of them were willing to follow his order, however, since it was clear to them that the Seven Sisters had only come to help them, and that they had done so at their own personal risk. Lord Kydro immediately realized that he would have a revolution to deal with if he did not act quickly.

"Back inside," he commanded Droka and his nearby guards, "Leave the girl here. She's of no further use to us now."

After re-entering the manor, they barred the door, and before Jaren or Lodon had decided on a course of action, they felt the ground vibrate beneath their feet. A moment later, the ship lurched back to life and lifted off the ground, only this time it was in the hands of a reckless, inexperienced pilot. Stones began to fall on all sides, and many of the castle walls and buildings swayed dangerously.

"To the green!" Elendrin called out as she and the Sisters faced each other in a circle of intense concentration. Stones and other objects that fell near them bounced off of an invisible barrier, careening harmlessly to the side. Jaren, Lodon and Seyja leapt into action, helping the injured, young and elderly to reach the safety of the castle green as quickly as possible while the ship below their feet listed dangerously to its port side. They could hear the sound of turbolaser cannons firing, and looked down to see the fields, villages and manor house below being assaulted by a poorly aimed barrage of red bolts.

"We'll use the _Meridian_ to get everyone out of here," Jaren said to Lodon and Seyja as they made a final trip towards the castle green. Jaynine was already at the bottom of the ramp, helping to carry the injured to the beds above.

* * *

After a few quick trips with the _Prime Meridian_, the civilians of Hillcastle had been evacuated and only supporters of Lord Kydro remained. Jaren asked Seyja to stay on the _Prime Meridian_ as a guide, since her knowledge of the local topography would be useful to the Jedi. Jaynine lifted off and turned the _Meridian_ back towards the floating castle with its crew of knights and men-at-arms, who had veered off in a south-westerly direction.

"Lodon, you and I will man the turbolasers," Jaren said as the much larger vessel came into view, "but I don't think we'll have enough firepower to bring down a capital transport. Most of the shield generators were still operational, and the Correllians have always used heavy durasteel hull plating."

The _Meridian_ quickly caught up with the larger ship and made a few strafing runs past each side to test the shields. A few shots were fired in return, but the smaller vessel was never in any danger of being hit. The transport's shields seemed to be holding up, and although Lodon and Jaren did manage to score a few direct hits to the hull, they did little damage.

"We might as well be throwing rocks at them, Jaynine," Jaren said over the comm. "Can we at least determine their heading?"

"They're maintaining an altitude of 500 metres, which is extremely low, especially since we're now entering a mountain range," the pilot responded.

"Kydro must be using the topography to navigate," the Jedi master suggested. "They don't know how to use the displays to navigate."

"I think I know where they're going," Seyja stated tentatively, using the comm for the first time. "This valley leads to Ravenport, a huge city on the coast." There was a brief pause before Seyja spoke up again. "I think they're going to use the ship to ram through the city walls."

"To Kydro, that transport is just a moving castle," Jaren replied, "and now that he's realized how powerful it is, he intends to use it to take over the most important location he can think of."

"But without a real pilot on board, they'll most likely destroy half of the city when they try to land," warned Lodon.

"That's probably part of the plan," responded Jaren, his voice heavy with cynicism. "Seyja, what can you tell us about the route they're taking to Ravenport?"

"I've never been to the coast," Seyja admitted, "but I have heard that you need to climb to the source of the River Terth in the Kylin Pass, and then follow the River Roaring all the way to the ocean."

Jaynine slowed the _Meridian_ and began following the unearthed transport at a safe distance. The two ships wove slowly through a heavily wooded valley, with thick greenery growing very nearly to the peaks of the steep mountains. Great clouds of mist filled the narrow gorge, and visibility quickly became limited to a few hundred metres.

"What is this place, Seyja?" Lodon asked over the comm, a note of wonder in his voice.

"This is the Banyan Forest, but I don't know much about it. I've heard that it's very ancient. Only people who want to be alone ever come here, like monks and hermits."

Lodon closed his eyes and reached out with the Force. He felt a strange presence, somewhat similar to the semi-sentient Vesuvague and Baffor trees found on his home planet of Ithor. After a moment, his eyes opened wide with epiphany.

"This isn't really a forest, it's just a single tree that has spread and grown throughout the entire valley! It has vine-like roots that grow down from its branches, which eventually become new trunks and then -"

"That's interesting Lodon, but right now we need to stop Lord Kydro," Jaren interrupted, slightly irritated. A moment of silence passed before Lodon responded.

"Jaynine, fly us upside down over top of the other ship's bridge. Jaren, you and I will drive them downwards, before we pass through that narrow ravine up ahead."

"Sure, what a great plan, we'll fly upside down, and then what... confuse them into submission?," Jaynine replied, mustering all the sarcasm available to his vocoder.

"Just do it, Jaynine. I think I know what he has in mind."

Jaynine followed the instructions, positioning the ship so that the rear turbolasers could fire almost directly into the bridge. Jaren and Lodon released a flurry of bolts, weakening the shields and sending Kydro and his men into a panic. The ship quickly tipped downwards, so that the vulnerable bridge viewport was protected by the heavy hull plating above. Lodon once again closed his eyes in concentration, and soon long flexible branches and vines began rising out of the forest canopy, and stretched out from the forest walls ahead of them. They latched onto the low-flying transport, encircling turbolaser turrets and reaching into crevices and holes in the hull plating. The ship began to slow, and as it did, even more vines rose to entangle it and pull it towards the forest floor.

Lord Kydro felt his archaic ship slowly come to a halt and then lurch towards the ground. He yelled at his crew and punched at the controls, but nothing seemed to make a difference. A long vine reached up and over the viewscreen before Kydro realized what was happening.

"Point all cannons at the ground and fire! The warlocks are making the forest pull us down!"

Smoke and debris began flying into the air as the ancient Corellian vessel poured all of its firepower into the trees and plants below. Lodon was caught off guard by the sudden burst of pain and anger that surged through the Force and into his consciousness.

"Jaren, I think I made a mist-"

His voice was cut off as the primitive yet intense emotions of the massive tree overwhelmed him, and he passed out before he could sever the connection. Jaren, although worried about his apprentice, was distracted by the vines and branches that had begun to lash out with anger.

"Jaynine, pull up, out of range from those things!" he yelled into the comm. As they lifted, the vines began tearing apart the other ship, rending it into pieces as it drifted down towards the forest floor. A huge explosion lit up the sky a moment later, as the ship finally made impact.

"Wha-... what happened?" Lodon's voice came across the comm as he regained consciousness.

"You did it," Jaren said with a hint of pride in his voice, "The ship is in pieces scattered across the jungle down there."

"You also attracted a lot of attention," Jaynine chimed in. "We have incoming ships at mark 2-4-1. They're small, probably fighters, and they're moving fast."

"The pirates," Jaren responded, "stay in the mountains, Jaynine, we'll outmanoeuvre them."

Most of the fighters were too far away to catch the _Meridian_, but the leader had closed the distance, and tailed them through the clouds of mist filling the mountain canyons. Jaren and Lodon exchanged fire with the smaller vessel, but clear shots were hard to come by while flying through the narrow, winding valleys.

"If we don't lose it soon, it'll report our position to that cruiser they have," Jaren warned, remembering their previous encounter with the pirates.

"Doing the best I can, _master_," Jaynine replied, his synthesized voice contorted with frustration. They came through a sharp, hairpin corner, but the fighter remained on their tail.

"Captain, I've got another incoming vessel," Jaynine said rapidly into the com, "It's unidentified, fighter class, different than the ship that's chasing us."

Lodon's eyes lit up as he saw the familiar triangular shape of a Delta-7 Interceptor pass his side of the ship.

"It's a Jedi!" he proclaimed. With unerring precision, the Interceptor unleashed a barrage of laser-fire at the pursuing vessel, which promptly careened into the canyon wall and exploded into tiny fragments.

"Good to see you're in working order, _Prime Meridian_," a female voice came over the comm. "This is Jedi Watchman Kaydree Ordell. Captain Drezriff of _Galvanna II _informed me that you had a run-in with pirates, but we had no idea if you were even still alive. That transport showed up on my scanner. I'm glad I decided to check it out, but unfortunately the pirates did too."

"Thanks for the help, Kaydree, what coordinates should we use for our hyperspace jump?"

"I've been tracking these pirates for months, there's no way I'm gonna turn and run now that I've finally found them. I'll power down my ship and hide in this canyon; my droid is sending you coordinates for the attack pattern I want you to run. You might take a little heat, but it'll be worth it."

Jaynine covered the rear cannons and slowed the _Meridian _so that it stayed within attack range of the pursuing fighters. Laser bolts rang off the rear deflectors as he began evasive manoeuvres.

"These coordinates call for a bootlegger barrel roll," Jaynine announced over the comm. "You're all going to want to find something to hang on to."

"Great. I love it when my droid knows more about what's going on than I do."

"_Your_ droid? I thought we'd been over this before. Besides, I'm the better pilot."

"Just let us know when you're opening the canopies so we can blast those pirates to oblivion."

A moment later Kaydree opened fire on the pirates from behind.

"Now, _Meridian_!"

Jaynine banked the ship into a sharp u-turn, angling slightly upwards at the same time. Just as he completed the turn, he tilted the _Meridian_ into a downward corkscrew pattern. The canopies re-opened, releasing a hail of unpredictable turbolaser bolts that spat in all directions as the ship spun through three complete barrel rolls.

"Yeee-haw!" Jaren yelled as he struggled to operate his cannon while being thrown around in his seat. Their unexpected turnaround caught two of the fighters by surprise, sending one ship spinning off into the distance while the other spiralled towards the mountains below. Kaydree had managed to disable two more fighters with her surprise attack, so only one pirate vessel remained. It continued on its path towards the _Prime Meridian_ with the Jedi Watchmen in hot pursuit.

"She wants me to do what?!" Jaynine's exasperated voice came over the comm as he responded to instructions from the Watchman's droid. "Alright, but don't blame me if it doesn't work…"

The _Meridian_ and the pirate were now on a collision course, and neither pilot showed any signs of giving way. The _Meridian_ was larger than its opponent, but the fighter had a sharp, hard nose-cone designed for ramming through other ships.

"We're gonna crash…" Seyja's unsure voice came over the comm, but Jaynine didn't flinch. At the last possible moment the other vessel banked hard to its port side, aiming to cut across the _Meridian_'s bow. Jaynine banked in the same direction, bumping the fighter's nose-cone, while Kaydree, who had been pursuing the pirate from behind, pushed the fighter's stern with the bow of her ship. Being pushed from the bow on one side and the stern on the other forced the fighter into an uncontrollable horizontal spin, leaving the ship helplessly firing its lasers in a chaotic spiral pattern as the pilot tried to regain control.

"I need to talk to that pirate," Kaydree announced over the comm. "I don't think any of the others survived. Disable its engines, and we'll escort it down to a landing site."

Lodon and Jaren aimed their shots carefully, and managed to hit two of the fighter's three engines without destroying the whole ship. Jaren instructed Jaynine to force the other pilot down in an empty field near Dunvale, where they had left the Seven Sisters and the refugees from Hillcastle. The pilot tried to make an escape just as they were landing, but Jaren quickly used his cannon to disable the third engine, and the fighter dove nose first into a nearby field.

* * *

While Kaydree interrogated the pilot, Jaren and Lodon explained to the Seven Sisters how they had brought down Lord Kydro's flying castle. The Sisters vowed to use their talents to help heal the Banyan Forest, and to try to make contact with the ancient, massive tree. They had not known the forest was made up of just one extensive organism.

After they had finished speaking with the Sisters, Seyja cautiously approached Jaren.

"Excuse me, Master Cregg," she said, almost as if she was addressing one of her feudal lords. "I enjoyed flying in your sky-ship very much, and the metal creature, Jaynine I think you call him, tells me that there is room for another passenger onboard. I was wondering if you would take me with you to see other parts of the galac-... gal-ack-see?"

"Well, it seems you've already won over my droid, and that's the hardest part of flying on the _Meridian_."

"I'm not yours," Jaynine's distant voice reminded the Jedi from several metres away.

"If your family agrees, then yes, you can come with us. Jaynine will teach you astrogation and piloting; Lodon and I will make sure you know how to handle a blaster, and how to use the turbolaser turrets."

Not long afterwards, Kaydree led a Rodian in binders out of a nearby hut she had been using for the interrogation.

"I need you to take this prisoner back to Coruscant for me, along with an important message," she said to Jaren.

"Sure," he replied, "where are you off to?"

"I have to find the cruiser that got you into this mess. These aren't ordinary pirates, no matter what Yolla here says. The whole operation is too sophisticated." The Watchman's gaze drifted off to the horizon momentarily before she turned back to Jaren.

"Anyway, I'm still confused about what exactly happened here after your ship went down. Care to fill me in?"

"I think you might not believe me unless you see for yourself," Jaren replied as he led Yolla to the _Meridian_'s hold. "Follow us in your interceptor and I'll show you."

* * *

People had already begun salvaging the ruins of Hillcastle, and some were even consulting about how to best rebuild the fortress-town. As Seyja walked down the _Meridian_'s ramp she saw her father driving his bardok-cart on the road and ran ahead to meet him. Jaren and Lodon recounted the events of the last few days to Kaydree as they followed at a relaxed pace.

"So you're telling me that an ancient transport flew right out of this hill, with a castle on top? How did it get here, and why are there no records of civilization on this planet?" Kaydree asked, more to herself than the others.

"It must have crash-landed here around twenty-five thousand years ago, when the Republic was just forming, before the holonet was fully developed," Jaren speculated.

"After the crew was rescued, the ship eventually became covered in topsoil, so that it just seemed like another hill when the locals finally discovered it," Kaydree added.

"I don't think so," said Jaren, "at least, not exactly. The locals seem to be the descendants of the original Corellian colonists. When their ship crashed, they must have lost all communications capability. Since it was no longer space-worthy, they left the transport where it was and began to focus on surviving here. After a generation or two, it became nearly impossible to maintain blasters, datapads, or any other advanced technology, and basic agriculture and hunting skills became far more important. Eventually their descendants lost the memory that higher technologies even existed, and their political system became feudal, rather than democratic. After a few thousand years, the ship became covered with soil, which created the perfect strategic high ground for a fort, and eventually a castle."

"If they're Corellians, how is it that they speak Basic?" Lodon asked, after pondering his master's hypothesis.

"Corellia was one of the founding worlds of the Republic, and among the first to adopt Basic as an official language. It's quite possible that some of the crew already felt more comfortable speaking Basic than Corellian."

"And what about Kydro's blaster?"

"It must have been hidden away in the castle somewhere, and when he became lord he found it, figured out what it was and how to use it. I've heard that those early beam-tube blaster power packs don't degrade very quickly; apparently they can even last thousands of years."

"Interesting," Kaydree commented, "but the longer we stand here, the more difficult it's going to be to track down whoever was trying to steal the Republic's bacta. Hey, instead of taking that prisoner back to Coruscant, we can leave him here for now, and you can give me a hand with these pirates, if it's alright with you. This is obviously a dangerous organization, and it sure wouldn't hurt to have the _Prime Meridian_ nearby when things get hot. I'll report to the Council and let them know that I need your help."

"I just finished fixing her," Jaynine protested, "and now you want us to take her right back into the jaws of the dragon?"

"Sure," Jaren responded, ignoring the droid's comment. "Let's go."


End file.
